A brutal and bloody action legacy sequel is now streaming, and finds action movie icon Jean-Claude Van Damme returning to one of his cult classic 80s sci-fi franchises. After leading the first Universal Soldier, which combines science fiction and action into a gloriously no-nonsense B-grade treat, and returning for a few much lesser follow-ups, the franchise was resurrected in 2012 with a legacy sequel led by John Wick: Chapter 4 and The Expendables 2 star Scott Adkins.
Universal Soldier: Day Of Reckoning sees Van Damme’s super soldier Luc Deveraux return to the fray, but with a twist. This time, instead of leading the action as the main protagonist, the legacy sequel brings the character back as the main antagonist, with the final movie (at least, for now) following Adkins’ amnesiac super soldier as he fights to discover who he really is. Universal Soldier: Day of Reckoning is now available to stream on Prime Video, and you can check out the official synopsis below.
“Forced into hiding, a rogue troop of Unisols have formed an underground militia of deadly warriors. Lead by the merciless Andrew Scott (Lundgren) and Luc Deveraux (Van Damme), their plan is to rage a war of total destruction. Only one man can stop them. Hell bent on revenge for the death of his family, John (Adkins) is on a mission to hunt down and kill all Unisols, unless they find him first.”
Universal Soldier: Day of Reckoning Offers Ultra-Violent B-Movie Action Thrills
Directed by John Hyams and from a screenplay he co-wrote with Doug Magnuson and Jon Greenlagh, Universal Soldier: Day of Reckoning stars an action movie trio of Scott Adkins, Jean-Claude Van Damme, and Dolph Lundgren, with the latter pair reprising their roles from the first movie. The sequel does what several legacy sequels have in recent years, ignoring two television movies and the events of the 1999 theatrical sequel Universal Soldier: The Return, instead acting as a direct follow-up to 2009’s Universal Soldier: Regeneration.
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The action movie was helmed by the director behind James Bond outings Casino Royale and GoldenEye.
While the action outing was met with mixed reviews, largely because of its excessive violence, Universal Soldier: Day of Reckoning was praised for its direction and fight sequences. Many of which demonstrate why Scott Adkins remains one of the best kept secrets in the action genre.
Andy Webster of New York Times said of the movie, “This bloody wallow in sweat, guns and fisticuffs – for those who swing that way – delivers,” while Frank Scheck of The Hollywood Reporter adds, “Superbly choreographed and filmed action sequences enliven this ultra-violent B-movie.” Finally, Mark Olsen of the Los Angeles Times was captivated by the movie’s eerie atmosphere, which at times leans heavily into horror, saying, “The movie creates something of the sensation of huffing industrial solvents – in a good way! – a waking-sleep zombification that can’t exactly be described as pleasurable but definitely has an odd, distinct power.”
- Release Date
- October 4, 2012
- Runtime
- 93
- Writers
- John Hyams , Doug Magnuson , Jon Greenhalgh , Moshe Diamant , Richard Rothstein , Christopher Leitch
- Tagline
- Under their own command.